U2 have opened the UK leg of their ’VERTIGO’ world tour in MANCHESTER.

The band, who toured extensively across North America earlier this year in support of their current album ’How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’, played the first of two sold-out nights at the City Of Manchester Stadium (June 14).

Beginning and ending with recent Number One ‘Vertigo’, the band played a hit-packed set that took in current album ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’, was heavy on tracks from their debut album ‘Boy’ and climaxed with an encore that concentrated on 1991 album ‘Achtung Baby’.

Before ‘Miracle Drug’ the singer paid tribute to the city’s scientific legacy (the first computer was built in the city) and at the end of ‘With Or Without You’ he sang excerpts from Joy Division’s ‘Transmission’ and ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ - as bassist Peter Hook stood and watched.

After the show, Bono told NME.COM: “It was a strange and overwhelming feeling to be back in Manchester and so exposed, because we went out with the sun still up. Rock stars like proper darkness, let’s be honest. Rock stars like to stand in front, behind, on top of or underneath large video screens. So to stand there in such a stripped-down way, play songs from our first album and it feel so right and feel so now, and all the magic going off; that was good.

At the end of ‘Running To Stand Still’, which was dedicated to “servicemen and their families”, the UN Declaration on Human Rights was flashed up on screen, and later, Bono thanked “Gordon Brown and (the) Prime Minister,” for the steps taken last week towards the cancellation of third world debt.

“This is the moment to make poverty history,” he said from the stage, “Prime Minister Blair, we have a message for you from this stadium of lights… this could be your moment.”

Later, Bono explained to NME.COM: “The Africa stuff really connected, because you just don’t know. Are you gonna get bottled at that point, are they gonna boo? Are they gonna say hurry fucking up? But actually they were rabid. But you get the feeling in the country that there’s a bit of history to be made and people want to be part of it.”

In addition to their hits including ’One’, ’Elevation’ and ’Sunday Bloody Sunday’, the group played a handful of songs from ’How To Dismantle…’, including ’Vertigo’ and ’Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own’, which was dedicated to Bono’s late father.

The setlist ran:

* ‘Vertigo’
* ‘I Will Follow’
* ‘Electric co’
* ‘Elevation’
* ‘New Year’s Day’
* ‘Beautiful Day’
* ‘City Of Blinding Lights’
* ‘Miracle Drug’
* ‘Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own’
* ‘Love Or Peace Or Else’
* ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday’
* ‘Bullet The Blue Sky’
* ‘Running To Stand Still’
* ‘Pride (In The Name Of Love)’
* ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’
* ‘One’
* ‘Zoo Station’
* ‘The Fly’
* ‘Mysterious Ways’
* ‘With Or Without You’
* ‘All Because Of You’
* ‘Yahweh’
* ‘Vertigo’